(6) The Department’s reply does not engage with the argument in my grounds of appeal. The Department’s first response to the FOI request was to claim the exemption that the information requested was already available, referring me to a parliamentary written answer in which the same information was requested but the Department refused to provide it. This demonstrates (i) the Department’s hostility to transparency and (ii) its lack of confidence that the s.35 exemption would be defensible. The Commissioner required the Department to issue a fresh response (Decision notice IC-177874-G8K2). The Relevant exemption: 14. In order for section 35(1)(a) of the FOIA to be engaged, information must relate to: “(a) The formulation or development of government policy. 15. S.35 of FOIA states: “(1) Information held by a government department or by [F1 the Welsh Assembly Government] is exempt information if it relates to— (a)the formulation or development of government policy, (b)Ministerial communications, (c)the provision of advice by any of the Law Officers or any request for the provision of such advice, or (d)the operation of any Ministerial private office. (2) Once a decision as to government policy has been taken, any statistical information used to provide an informed background to the taking of the decision is not to be regarded—(a)for the purposes of subsection (1)(a), as relating to the formulation or development of government policy, or (b)for the purposes of subsection (1)(b), as relating to Ministerial communications. (3) The duty to confirm or deny does not arise in relation to information which is (or if it were held by the public authority would be) exempt information by virtue of subsection (1). (4) In making any determination required by section 2(1)(b) or 12